Rally world champion Ott Tänak is concerned about the future of the World Championships in the sport.
According to the Estonian, the organizers of the World Rally Championship have no guarantees that the competitions can be held safely in the coming season due to the corona pandemic.
“The beginning of next year doesn’t look any better than it does now. If the situation continues the same, we will not be running for the 2021 World Championships, ”Tänak told Autosport.
All that remains of this year’s rally series is the Monza World Championship in Italy, in early December. In mid-November, the program was supposed to include the Ypres World Rally Championship in Belgium, but it has been canceled.
In practice, it also meant that Tänak can no longer defend his world championship this year.
Due to the Covid-19 pandemic this season only five World Rally Championships have been run: Monte Carlo, Sweden, Mexico, Estonia and Sardinia. Of these, the Swedish and Mexican races were also run in abbreviated form.
The World Rally Championships in Argentina, Portugal, Kenya, Finland, New Zealand, Japan, Britain and Germany have been canceled.
There are twelve races in next year’s World Cup calendar, for which six reserve races have been nominated for certainty. The Finnish World Rally Championship is in July-August 2021.
The new season should begin in Monte Carlo on January 21, 2021.
“I fully understand that so many World Cup rallies had to be canceled this season. Next season doesn’t look any better, ”Tänak repeated.
Director of the World Rally Championship Yves Matton says it is still impossible to know in which direction the situation will turn. If the coronavirus is brought under control due to the vaccine, for example, the World Cup series may continue almost normally.
“The World Rally Championship, when it comes, will touch the entire local community. We cannot isolate ourselves from the environment, ”Matton said.
Toyota’s Elfyn Evans is the best placed in this year’s World Riders Championship. He has a total of 111 World Cup points while a Frenchman from the same team Sébastien Ogier is 97.
Hyundai Belgian Thierry Neuville is third with 87 points. Monza has the whole rally and power stages and the winner is can gain 25 points.
If Evans is left without points and Ogier does not succeed, Neuville can win the World Championship title by a point difference to Evans (112-111).
Source: Pledge Times